The Black Harvest Film Festival is Chicago’s annual showcase for films that tell stories, raise questions, or touch on issues that relate to the African American, Black African, and African diasporic experience. We invite feature length or short films for consideration in the festival. If you have any additional questions, please contact Barbara Scharres at 312.846.2070 or bscharres@saic.edu

Films selected for the 25th Anniversary Black Harvest Film Festival will be eligible for three unique opportunities.

All short films will be judged by a panel of jurors with the winning film receiving the Richard and Ellen Sandor Family Black Harvest Film Festival Prize, a $1,000 award.

The top three audience winners in both the short and feature film category will have their films screened online on Cre8sion Media, a multimedia streaming platform.

Three audience winners chosen by Cre8sion Media and its staff will have their feature pitched to various media outlets.

ENTRY GUIDELINES

The deadline for entry is June 7, 2019. There is no entry fee.

Year of completion must be 2017 or later.

Films MUST be Chicago premieres. Films that have had Chicago or suburban screenings prior to the festival are ineligible for the Black Harvest Film Festival

Entries will be accepted in the form of an online link or DVD preview screener accompanied by a completed entry form and a press kit or credit list. Screeners and materials will not be returned.

Foreign language films must be subtitled in English.

Entries selected for the festival MUST be available for public exhibition in one of the following formats: DCP or Apple ProRes formatted digital file. DVD and Blu-ray discs will not be accepted for theatrical projection.

All legal clearances including, but not limited to, talent, music, or stock footage are the responsibility of the filmmaker.

The Gene Siskel Film Center reserves the right to utilize clips or stills from any film selected for the festival for publicity purposes.